Thursday 28 April 2011

A Royal Treat

©Katie Anderton

Tomorrow is the Royal Wedding of Prince William and Kate, a celebration which the majority of England have been planning for several months now. Picnics, street parties, party food and cakes have dominated conversation over the last few weeks. As people keep telling me "it is a once in a life time celebration for our generation'. 

It is all very exciting but i just cant help but think how much is this costing. Not to the economy (although that is an equally worrying subject) but how much is this costing the environment. Millions of people have travelled from all over the world to watch the wedding first hand, thousands of novelty items, many of which are plastic, have been manufactured, limited edition bottles of alcohol have been made and on top of all that many will leave the televisions on all day whilst watching the event. And remember footage starts at 6 am in the morning! 

Now don't get me wrong, I'm looking forward to it just as much as the next person. I have planned my picnic, purchased some novelty bunting and spent the evening making some cakes. Have we all forgotten what this will mean for the environment? And out of everyone who partakes in tomorrow's event, how many will recycle? It was recently reported, in Time Magazine,  that experts from Landcare Research predict that the occasion will generate more than 12 times as much greenhouse than Buckingham Palace in a whole year, for the scientists out their, totaling 6,765 tons of carbon dioxide. Royal officials insist that a series of measures to reduce the environmental impact of the service are being undertaken. Flowers will be seasonal, the food will be sourced locally and guests have apparently been asked to either plant a tree or make a donation to Earth Watch which is a charity which supports research into rainforest ecology, wildlife conservation and marine science. 

Obviously everyone has a right to celebrate this joyous occasion just like i am doing but I think it is very important to illustrate the potential damage this event is having on the planet and ask that everyone accounts for their own carbon footprint and consumes sensibly remembering tomorrow is another day. I think the Royal Wedding can be successful without impacting upon the environment too much. 


©Newsweek

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